Welcome to Don’t Stop Living!! My new weblog – 27th July 2007
Welcome to my blog. That’s short for weblog. I’m Jonny Scott Blair. I’m new to the internet but I’m not new to the world. I’ve lived on this planet for 27 years now and am constantly in search of wisdom, culture and perpetual laughter. Every person I meet, I embrace and warm to and get to know them. I am here to meet people and share stories, memories, experiences and passion with. I will aim to experience new people and culture and share these with every person I know and meet. It’s not a bad world. Let’s see what we can give it. Let’s see what we can get from it. Don’t stop living. That is my motto and I live by it. Jump in and join my journeys around the globe. I’m a travelling Northern Irishman! Don’t Stop Living! Incidentally, as I write this from Toronto in Canda, the phrase “Don’t Stop Living” was one I stole from Toronto in 2001. It was etched as grafitti on a High School Wall and I have taken inspiration from it ever since.
Jonny Blair: Having a tequila sunrise on my travels in Prague, Czech Republic in 2007
I will start this blog by putting in all the places from my 2007 world tour and my experiences there. I will also add in some other places and cultures I’ve seen plus people I’ve met, and it will develop from there. It was backpacking in Toronto this summer that provided me with the inspiration to start this travel blog. I met Lee and Mike who had travel blogs. Then in New York I met Cassiano and in Taupo I met Stacie, both also travel bloggers. So it was time for me to start one…
Drawing Maradona and the Norn Iron page of my Mexico 86 Panini album
The country I grew up in was NORTHERN IRELAND, one of the smaller parts of the UK and my time there seeing beautiful people smile through times of trouble gave me inspiration for life and adventure.
I will create a section which includes every football stadium I’ve been to as well as every country and city I lay my hat. I’ll also try to write about every beer I’ve tried and every bar, pub, club or restaurant I’ve been in. This is the culture I embrace. I’m a football fan who likes a drink and likes people!
Enjoy and feel free to comment! I am also contactable on e-mail to jonnyscottblair at hotmail.com.
My favourite quotes are:
“Happiness lies in your own hands” – Madonna
“Everyday is all there is” – Kylie Minogue
“Spend your nightlife table hopping” – Noel Gallagher
“There are things stronger than parliamentary majorities” – Andrew Bonar Law
“Dont stop now” – Neil Finn
and of course, this blog’s name and title –
“DONT STOP LIVING” – Jonny Scott Blair (2001) – well, I stole it from graffiti on a High School Wall in Toronto, Canada.
Did you ever jot down or take note of what Toronto high school it was that you saw the graffiti written on? I am sure it has been replaced by now, but since I live here, I may have to take the time to see if it still exits and snap a photo for you if I can.
Ray this is a REALLY REALLY good question and I’m actually really wanting to hunt down that school and find the graffiti. This is what actually happened. I visited Toronto first in 2001 and that is actually when I saw the graffiti. I was walking round near the University somewhere like Wellesley Street West or near Dundas Street and I looked up and saw a wall on a High School dubbed the words “Don’t Stop Living” that was it. I did a double take and thought “Wow, what wisdom!”. I didnt have a camera so I took out my travel notebook and wrote it down. I then wrote a poem called “Don’t Stop Living”. I then used it as a kind of cathcphrase for a few years then in 2007 returned to Toronto through a cheap flight I got. In the hostel (in Chinatown) I met 2 other travel bloggers and started my blog. When it came to thinking of a title, it was way too obvious and there was only one winner. Don’t Stop Living. So Toronto is not just where my blog began in 2007, but it’s where the title came from. I’d loved to go back there. Asides Sydney, Bangkok, KL and Hong Kong, it would be the only city outside Europe I’ve been to three times and the only one I’ve really backpacked in three times! If you find it, make a video and take a photo. I’m so up for seeing that!! Jonny
Okay, that at least give me a start. I will search online to see which high schools are located near University of Toronto, and go from there. I’ll see what I can do. In the mean time, you don’t stop living and I won’t stop hunting! 😉
Nice one Ray – give it a try, but it was 12 years ago…
Ray, It was now confirmed as more like Wellesley Street East, and I’ve now been to Paramaribo and Sao Paolo both thrice since I was even last in Toronto. Even stranger it was at JARVIS College Institute, which is probably not even a High School, and also Jarvis, if you read the stories and quotes has had a huge influence on the blog too. A wild world. https://www.google.com/maps/@43.6664248,-79.3766308,3a,75y,181.57h,94.81t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1stTzsiQHU7VJ626PmWMNTEw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu
Safe travels,
Jonny
Jonny Blair recently posted…The Campaign For A Northern Ireland Flag Emoji Code